Medicinal plants have been widely used as antimicrobial agents to treat a variety of infectious diseases such as pneumonia, stomach, urinary tract infection, gonorrhea and dysentery. According to an estimate, 80% of the antimicrobial agents which are widely used worldwide for the management of infectious diseases are derived from native plants. A variety of native plants in Africa have shown promise to treat different infectious diseases and some of them possess broad spectrum antimicrobial activities. This article therefore describes potential antimicrobial efficacy and safety of medicinal plants namely Mystroxylon aethiopicum, Lonchocarpus capassa, Albizia anthelmentica and Myrica salicifolia which are used by ethnic groups in Africa for the management of infectious diseases. Since these plants possess broad spectrum antimicrobial properties, the article suggests future in vivo studies which will ultimately lead to the development plant based pharmaceutical formulations.